14 Greatest Video Game Villains Of The Decade (So Far)

2. The Illusive Man - Mass Effect 2 (2010)

Now it's time for someone who takes villainy a little more seriously. Well, I say villain, but that's doing The Illusive Man's role in the Mass Effect saga a massive disservice - he's so much more than that. Martin Sheen's character is the Morally Grey trope given human form, but without the clichés. On one hand, the shady leader of the pro-human Cerberus organisation is responsible for Shephard still being alive instead of space debris floating uselessly across a vacuum for all eternity, but on the other, well, that's left largely for you to decide... There's not really any right or wrong answer as to whether the Illusive Man can truly be considered evil. Sure, he's all about championing the continued existence and superiority of the Human race, but he's so obsessed with that goal that he's essentially become a universal xenophobe and, in the end, a slave to the Reapers. He's placed firmly on the extreme end of the moral spectrum, and a warning to the player of what would result if they try to control things beyond their power. In this case, Giant Robotic Squids of Destruction who's only goal is to wipe out all sentient life.